I am looking to hunt free range kudu, mountain zebra and eland. Anyone have experience in the Erongo Mountains in Namibia?

Hi there,
I book for an area in the Erongo Mountains.
Free range Eland can be fairly difficult. Kudu numbers are down because of rabbies but you can still find nice bulls.

Mt Zebra is plentyful on most properties. You should also add DikDik and Klippspringer to your bucket list.

Dennis

That area is all private land with some resettlement areas. Most tracts are in the 30,000 hectare range. Most areas are low fenced cattle operations however there are several high fenced hunting operations.

As Caracal stated, there are a handful of Kudu bulls around as rabies is still taking a toll on them. There are Eland in the area, but they move with the water and there has been precious little water for the past 3 years.

Blaser Safari has some Kudu and Eland along with a lot of other introduced species. It is not "free range" and it is certainly not cheap but they have what you want.

The Conservancies are further up north towards Etosha and many offer free range hunting on tracts in the 300,000 hectare and up range. Again, Kudu and Eland are limited, however most have lots of Oryx, Springbok, both zebras, Hartebeest, Leopard, and the little guys.

I've hunted a couple of times with Peter and his dad Karl Hinterholzer of Erongo Lodge - erongolodge@iway.na
Their rates are very reasonable and they are a straight up couple of experienced guides.
Eland in the Erongo conservancy are always going to be tricky and as others have mentioned, the Kudu population has been hit hard on and off for a number of years.
Drop Peter a line and he will give you a very frank appraisal of trophy potential and species numbers in the area.
The Mountain Zebra hunt on foot in this area is a hunting experience I for one will never forget.
I wouldn't hesitate to hunt with these guys again

Thanks for the info...I will check them all out.

Cheers,

GunsCore

Don't know about the Erongo area but you might want to talk to L'Wyk from Leopard Legend Safaris who has access to some huge conservancies and has a very good reputation.

Best,

There are three in that area that I am aware of at the northern end of the Erongo mountains near (45 min. east) Kamanjob All are neighboring farms and all three have access to other properties (high and low fenced) in the area.

1. Sebra Hunts Owned by Jan & Mariesje du Plessis. I've been hunting with them every year since 2008. Just got back from there 10-days ago and heading back again next week. 50K US acres of all low-fence. Only books between 6-10 hunters a year. You or your party will be the only ones on the property for the duration of your hunt.

2. Shona Hunting Adventures Owned by Johann & Vera Veldsman. I have not personally hunted with Johann but I have met he and Vera socially and I have been to their main lodging/camp facilities. Their lodge and facilities are very nice and you will very likely be sharing camp with other hunters. I don't believe their main property is as large as Sebra but they also have access the same neighboring farms (some low fence, some high fence) as the others operating in the area. Very nice couple and I know Johann and Jan occasionally PH for each other if one of them is available and needs help. Johann and Vera are longtime friends with Jan and Mariesje and from what I can tell from just talking with them, they seem to run a quality operation too.

3. Leopard Legends Owned by Lwyk & Julie Jansen van Vuuren. I have not personally hunted with him nor have I been to his property or seen his facilities first hand. I have only met he and his wife socially. Their property boarders Sebra and Shona or is very close to them. A few weeks ago there were several herds of elephant roaming through all the properties in the area destroying fences and water holes, wells and holding tanks. I understand one herd passed through Lwyks place, knocked holes through some of his high fences and several waterbuck got out and are now running free over on Jan's (Sebra) fathers property next door.

As far as the area in general - it is terrific and scenic. The area right around Sebra actually got somewhat decent rains this year and has knee high grass for the first time in two or three years. 5-10 miles away from Sebra seemed to have missed most of the rains again and are in VERY short supply of grass. The quality/heath of the game in the Sebra/Shona/LL area are much better than game I saw a few weeks ago away from this area.

As mentioned about kudu and the rabies problem. Yes, the rabies has really hurt the old bull population but there are still a few VERY nice bulls remaining. In 2012 my wife got a 59 1/4" bull, in 2013 I got a 59 7/8" in bull and two weeks ago my two nephews got kudus in the 52-53" range. Not bad for the FIRST time they EVER went hunting EVER! We did see one old bull that was better than 58" but he saw us first and was not hanging around! Also saw one gemsbok in the 42-43" range.

As I said at the beginning - heading back to Sebra next week with a couple of friends who are doing their first Africa trip.

If you go, you really need to set aside a few days to drive to the coast (Swakopmund) and spend a few split between it and Walvis Bay. Windhoek is good for maybe 2-3 days of sightseeing.

I just returned yesterday from hunting at Westfalen Safaris, per the recommendation of Greg Brownlee. It is up near Etosha National Park and is free range for Mountain Zebra, Damara Dik Dik, Oryx, Klipspringer, etc. Hunting free range is much more difficult, but challenging. I shot a 3 1/2 inch Dik Dik, and a Mountain Zebra stallion, that I must say was one of the hardest, but most rewarding hunts in my 13 safaris to Africa. I also shot a nice Damaraland Springbok that measured in at 15 inches, and three Oryx for Westfalen for camp meat, one of which was 41 inches. If you are looking for free range hunting that challenges you, then this is a hunt for you. We also toured Etosha National Park for one full day, as well as the Himba Village which is only about 15-20 minutes from the Westfalen Safari Lodge. I will be posting a hunt report in the next few days, with pics. Westfalen also has Leopard, Kudu, (limited due to the rabies problem),Duiker, Steenbok (some very good ones!),Eland, etc.

We are heading to Westfalen next month, looking forward to it!

I can arrange kudu, and Zebra in the Erongo's. My ranch is 25 minutes from the entrance to the Erongo mountains. I do have a few concessions there where I can hunt. Eland I can take you to a concession about 2 hours drive from me where they are free ranging in the North.

You can mail me otjandaue@iway.na

Regards

Roy